Sod roll forming machine

ABSTRACT

A machine for rolling adjacent strips of precut sod into easily handled rolls and conveying the rolls to the side of the machine for discharge into a vehicle for transportation to the job site. The machine is adapted so that it can be operated in either a forward or reverse direction thus facilitating the removal of the precut sod particularly in small or enclosed fields.

llnited States Patent Ham-t1 [54] SUD/ROLL FORMING MACl-MNE [72]Inventor: John J. llllartl, 2200 2nd St. N.W., Cedar Rapids, lowa [22]Filed: Mar. 11, 1970 [21] Appl. No.: 118,485

[51] 1nt.C1. ..A0lb45/04 [58] FieldolSearch ..198/9,165;172/19,20;214/8326 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,778,292 1/1957Xavan ..172/260 3,053,328 9/1962 Geipe1.... .....172/19 3,485,30412/1969 Daymon.... .....172/19 2,663,242 12/1953 Lancaster ..l72/19 52I84 I48 20 A28 22 1 Mar.l4,1972

2,998,081 8/1961 Hartmangruber et al ..l72/20 3,164,211 1/1965 Scott..172/19 3,235,011 2/1966 Pasinski 3,498,386 3/1970 Daymon 3,499,4923/1970 Daymon ..l72/19 Primary Examiner-Robert E. Pulfrey AssistantExaminer--C. W. Hanor Attorney-1-1aven E. Simmons and James C. Nemmers[5 7] ABSTRACT 9 Claims, 10 Drawing Figures PATENTEDMAR I 4 i972 LiHEET1 [IF 5 INVENTOR JOHN J. HARTL ATTORNEY PMENTEDMAR 14 1972 3,68 779SHEET 2 BF 5 48 f 50 INVENTOR.

JOHN J. HARTL ATTORNEY PAITENTEBMAR 14 1972 23,68,779

SHEET 3 [IF 5 MOTOR INVENTOR.

JOHN J. HARTL ATTORNEY PATENTED'MAR 14 I972 3,648,779

SHEET [1F 5 INVEN'I'OR.

JOHN J. HARTL ATTORNEY PATENTEUMARM 1972 3,6A8J'79 SHEET 5 BF 5 "O rINVENTURn JOHN J. HARTL.

AT TORNE Y 80D ROLL FORMING MACHINE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thedevelopment of subdivisions of new homes, and the construction ofapartments and suburban commercial buildings, has created a demand forthe use of sod, since such areas are normally graded thus destroyingwhat ground cover may have existed. Because of the increased demand forsod, machines have been developed to cut sod in strips of apredetermined length. Once the sod is cut from a field, it must berolled and then lifted onto a truck or other vehicle for transportationto the site where it will be used. The sod, of course, must be rolledand laid at the new site promptly or it will become dried out and thegrass will die. The strips of precut sod can be manually rolled andlifted onto a vehicle, but the rolled strips are quite heavy and can beawkward to handle. Machines have, therefore, been designed to do thisheavy and difficult work of rolling the precut strips. However, themachines known to me are capable of handling only a single strip of cutsod, and they provide no means for conveying the sod to a position whereit can be easily and with a minimum of effort unloaded onto the bed of atruck. Moreover, the machines known to me for harvesting sod aredifficult to operate in small or enclosed fields and therefore the sodwhich has been cut around the edge of the field often must be manuallyhandled.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Applicants machine will simultaneously roll twoadjacent strips of precut sod, pick them up, and convey them upwardlyand to the side so that they can be'easily loaded into a truck or othervehicle moving alongside of the machine. The machine is self-propelled,and is adapted so that it can be towed over the road without violatinglaws imposing width limitations. When at the sod field, the machine canbe driven in either direction, with a reversal of direction accomplishedwithin a few minutes and with a minimum of ease. The machine of theinvention accomplishes this with the utmost simplicity to minimizeoperating problems and maintenance.

The above and other features of the invention will become evident fromthe detailed description herein when taken in connection with thefollowing identified drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the machineshowing the components of the machine positioned to convey the rolledsod to the right as the machine moves along the precut strips of sod;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged view in perspective showing a portion of themechanism by which the precut strips of sod are rolled;

FIG. 3 is a view in perspective of that portion of the drive mechanismof the apparatus which provides for change in direction of travel of themachine;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a part of the conveying portion of theapparatus which transfers the rolled sod sections to the side of themachine;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the main clutch portion of thedrive mechanism for the machine;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are perspective views showing the mounting for one of theground wheels which allows the wheel to be swung and locked in place attwo positions 90 from each other;

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a portion of the operatingmechanism for engaging and disengaging the drive for propelling themachine;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the steering mechanism for the machine;and

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the outer end of the final conveyor formoving the rolled sod from the discharge end of the lifting conveyorinto the vehicle.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The machine is mounted on achassis 18 which is supported on three wheels, a front" wheel l2 and tworear" wheels l4 and 16. The front wheel I2 has its axle fixed relativeto the chassis 10, but the entire wheel-axle assembly is easilyremovable so that the machine can be towed as a trailer on the rearwheels 114 and I6 when the vehicle is moved over the road. When beingtowed, the wheels l4 and 16 must be turned from their positions as shownin FIG. I of the drawings. The mounting which permits this is describedmore fully hereinafter, but for purposes of the present description thewheels are shown in their positions which allow the machine to beoperated as a self-propelled vehicle in the field.

The mechanism to roll the precut strips in each of two adjacent rows ofsod are substantially identical and each of them is indicated in FIG. Iby the reference numeral I8. Each of the sod rollers 18 has its upperend mounted on a shaft 20 that is supported on one end by an uprightframe member 22 and on its other end (the right in FIG. 1) by framemember 24. Each of the sod roller mechanisms has a rigid arm 26 theupper end of which is connected to the shaft 20 in. such a manner thatthe shaft 20 is free to rotate and the arm free to pivot on the shaft.For this purpose, the arms 26 may be mounted on the shaft 20 by bushingsor other suitable means (not shown).

Each end of each arm 26 is bifurcated, and between the bifurcations atthe upper end of each arm there is received a sprocket 28 which is keyedor otherwise affixed to the shaft 20 so as to be rotatable therewith.The sprocket 28 is connected by endless chain 30 to a sprocket 32affixed to a shaft 34 that extends transversely through the bifurcations36 at the lower end of the arm 26, the sprocket 32 being positionedbetween the bifurcations 36 as best seen in FIG. 2. The shaft 34 extendsbeyond each of the bifurcations 36 and has affixed to each of its outerends a rotatable disk 38 which has a plurality of axially extending pins48 secured to it around its periphery. In ad dition, there may besecured to each of the outer ends of the shaft 34 a paddle wheel 42although I have found that the use of such a paddle wheel is notabsolutely necessary to operation of the mechanism. About midway betweenthe ends of each arm 26 there is provided an idling roller 44 (FIG. Iwhich engages the inside surface of the chain. 30 and maintains thechain tight for a purpose that will be evident from the function of thechain arrangement.

Mounted above and below each of the disks 38 is a shoe 39 which hasadjustably secured to one end a lifter plate 41. The amount which theplate 41 extends beyond the surface of shoe 39 can be varied so that theplates 41 of the shoes 39 resting on the ground will engage the end ofaprecut strip of sod to lift it and start the sod roll.

From the description thus far of the sod roller mechanism, it will beobvious that as shaft 20 rotates, the disks 38 and paddle wheels 42 atthe lower ends of arms 26 will be rotatably driven by chain 30 in thedirection of the arrows of FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 1, the shoes 39 ofthe sod roller mechanisms 18 rest on the ground, and the two mechanismsare spaced apart according to the spacing of the precut strips of sod.When the disks 38 and paddle wheels 42 are rotated, and come into engagement with a precut strip of sod, the end of which has been lifted byplates 4ll, the rotating movement of the disks 38 and paddle wheels 42will, as the machine moves forwardly, cause the strip of sod to startrolling up. As the strip starts to form a roll, the roll will come intoengagement with the chain 30 the upper run of which is moving in thedirection of the arrow of FIG. 2. Thus, the lower run of the chain 30will be moving upwardly from the lower end of the arm 26 and willcontinue rolling up the sod. To assist the chain in engaging the roll ofsod, the chain 30 may be provided with outwardly projecting lugs 46 atregularly spaced intervals along the chain. The bottom run of the chain30 is maintained tight by the idler 44, and the angle of the arm 26 isdesigned so that as the sod rolls up and the diameter of the roll thusincreases, it will always be in engagement with the chain 30.

The sod is normally cut in strips of a predetermined length. As the rollformed from a precut strip is completed, it will continue to be rolledby movement of the chain 30 up onto an apron 48 (FIGS. 1 and 4) which ispivotally secured to the chassis 10. The chain 30 should be driven at aspeed two-andone-half to three times the speed of the machine itself sothat a roll of sod will be moved out of the way of the next roll. Anapron 48 is-pivotally secured along opposite sides of the chassis asbest seen in FIG. 4, and if the machine is moving in the direction ofthe arrow shown in FIGS. 1 and 4 the rearwardly extending apron has itsouter edge 50 resting almost on the ground. The apron 48 on the frontedge of the machine, however, has its outer edge extending upwardly sothat the apron serves as a stop. To maintain the apron 48 in an upwardlyextending position, a bar 52 having the shape of an inverted U has itslegs resting in mounting brackets 54 which are affixed to the chassis10, as best seen in FIG. 4. Thus, a roll of sod when completely rolledwill be moved onto the apron 48 by the chain 30 and then into the areain the center of the machine. Movement of the roll of sod any further sothat it would be moved off the chassis is prevented by the upwardlyextending apron 48 at the front of the machine.

In the center of the chassis 10 between the, two aprons 48 is positioneda first conveying means indicated generally by the reference numeral 56.The conveying means 56 consist basically of two spaced apart parallelshafts 58 and 60 extending between the frame members of chassis 10 asshown in FIG. 4. Secured to each of the shafts 58 and 60 are a pair ofbelt pulleys 62 and 64, respectively, and between each pair of pulleys62 and 64 is an endless conveyor belt 66. At the outer end of shaft 60is a drive pulley 68 which is power-driven in a manner more fullydescribed hereinafter so as to rotate shaft 60, pulleys 64 and 66. Thus,a roll of sod which is moved into the central area of the chassis 10 bythe conveyor chain 30 will engage the belts 66 which are driven in adirection so as to move the roll of sod from left to right (FIG. 4).

When a roll of sod has been first rolled and then picked up and conveyedto the side of the machine by the first conveying means 56, it isdesirable that the roll be lifted so that it can'be easily placed into avehicle for transportation to the job site. The rolls of sod aresomewhat heavy, and I have thus provided an elevating conveyor which isindicated generally by the reference numeral 70 (FIG. 1). The elevatingconveyor 70 can be of any suitable design, but preferably the conveyorincludes a suitable frame 72 which extends upwardly and outwardly fromthe discharge end of the first conveying means 56 terminating at aheight sufficient to allow a roll of sod to be discharged into a truckor other vehicle. If desired, the lower end of the frame 72 may bepivotally secured to the chassis 10 in any suitable manner so that theheight of the discharge end of the conveyor can be varied. The frame 72supports longitudinally extending side guides 74 which are spaced aparta suf ficient distance to receive a roll of sod. The guides 74 arepreferably curved inwardly toward the center of the conveyor 70, but theconveyor 70 is open along the bottom from the lower end to the dischargeend so as to receive in the opening an endless lower conveyor chain 76.Conveyor chain 76 is driven by a sprocket 78 (FIG. 3) at the lower endof the conveyor, which sprocket is affixed to the shaft 60 which is alsothe drive shaft for the first conveying means 56. At the upper end ordischarge end of the conveyor 70 there is provided a second sprocket 80(FIG. 10) also engageable with the conveyor chain 76. The chain 76 ispreferably similar to chain 30 and'is thus preferably provided withspaced apart lugs extending outwardly along the length of the chain. Theconveyor 70 is also provided with an upper conveyor chain 82 which isdriven by a drive sprocket 84 (FIG. 3) that is fixed to and rotatablewith the main power shaft 86. The upper chain 82 is also engageable withan upper sprocket 88 that is mounted on adjustable supports 89 forrotatable movement at the upper or I discharge end of the conveyor 70 asbest seen in FIG. 10. The

upper chain 82 is positioned above the conveyor 70 at a height so as tobe engageable with a roll of sod. The slotted supports 89 allow theupper sprocket 88 to move up and down depending on the size of the sodroll being handled. Thus, a roll of sod discharged from the firstconveying means 56 will be engaged on both top and bottom by the twoconveyor chains 76 and 82 so that the roll of sod will be carried easilyup along the guides 74 to the discharge end of the conveyor 70.Obviously, the two chains 76 and 82 must be driven at the same speed,and the details of the drive will be described hereinafter in connectionwith the drive arrangement for the entire machine. However, from FIG. 3,it will be evident that the two shafts 60 and 86 are driven at the samespeed but in opposite directions. This is made possible by the beltpulley arrangement shown in FIG. 3 in which the drive pulley 90 that isaffixed to the shaft 86 is the same size as the drive pulley 68 afiixedto the lower shaft 60, the drive pulleys being connected by a drive belt94 which is crossed over as shown so that the shafts 60 and 86 aredriven in opposite directions.

Once a roll of sod has been elevated to the top of the conveyor 70, itwould normally be lifted manually and placed in the truck. Since therolls of sod are somewhat fragile and since if they are dropped they canbecome unrolled, I prefer to provide at the discharge end of theconveyor a means for receiving a roll of sod and temporarily holding ituntil it can be manually lifted into a truck. This holding conveyor 96moves the roll of sod out of the way of the conveyor chains 76 and 82 sothat the lugs on them do not tear the sod. As shown in FIG. 10, theholding conveyor 96 consists of a supporting frame 98 which serves alsoas a support for the shaft 100 to which is affixed the sprocket 80. Alsoaffixed to the same shaft 100 are a pair of small pulleys 102 which areconnected by belts 104 to roller 106. The belts 104 serve to move theroll of sod from the discharge end of conveyor 70 until the roll strikesa stop member 108 secured at the outer end of the frame 98. The sod canthen rest in this position without being damaged by the moving belts104. From this position against the stop 108, the roll of sod can bemanually removed and placed in the truck for transportation to the site.

From the description thus far, it is evident that my machine is capableof rolling up a precut strip of sod, moving the roll onto the machineand then conveying and elevating it so that it can be easily andmanually placed in a vehicle for transporta' tion to the job site. Thedrive mechanism for driving the various conveyors and also forpropelling the machine itself will now be described.

The machine is a self-propelled machine and is preferably driven by amotor 110, such as an internal combustion engine that is mounted on thechassis 10 to the side of the machine. The motor 110 is positioned onthe right front of the machine as it is viewed in FIG. I. The motor ll0drives a main drive pulley 112 which is connected by belt 114 to asecond pulley 116 which is operatively connected to a drive shaft 118through clutch 120. By means of the operating handle 122 the clutch willengage and disengage the motor 110 from a gear box 124 which permits thepower to be transmitted at right angles from the drive shaft 118 to themain power shaft 86 (see FIG. 3). The main power shaft 86 has affixed toit a beveled gear 128 which is a part of a reversible drive mechanismindicated generally by the reference numeral 130. The main power shaft86 is the shaft which drives the first conveying means 56 through shaft60 and which also drives the elevating conveyor '70 through sprocket 84.Thus, the elevating conveyor 70 is continuously driven at all times thatthe clutch 120 is engaged. Also, since shaft 86 is connected to the beltpulley arrangement shown in FIG. 3 to shaft 60, the lower chain 76 ofconveyor 70 is also continuously driven but in the opposite direction.Shaft 60 also drives the first conveying means 56 so that these twoconveyors are continuously operating any time the clutch 120 is engaged.Also included in the reversible drive mechanism is a second beveled gear132 which is affixed to shaft 86 and is, therefore, rotatable at thesame speed and simultaneously with gear 128. Located between the twogears on shaft 20 is a third beveled gear 134, shaft 20 being positionedat right angles to shafts 86 and 126.

However, the gear I34 and its shaft 20 are eccentrically mounted withrespect to the two beveled gears I28 and 132 so teat by movement of thelever I36 in one direction the gear I134 will be disengaged from gearI28 and engaged with gear I32 and by movement of lever 136 in theopposite direction, gear I34 will be disengaged from gear I32 andengaged with gear I28. This provides for reversing the direction ofrotation of shaft 28 which is the drive shaft for the sod rollermechanism I8. Thus, the reverse drive mechanism I30 is provided so thatthe sod roller mechanism I8 can be driven in the proper directiondepending upon the direction of movement of the machine. However,regardless of the position of the gear I34, the first conveying means 56and the elevating conveyor '76 will always be driven in the samedirection.

As previously mentioned, the machine is designed so that it can bepulled over the road without violating width regulaiions. The machine isalso designed so that it can be propelled render its own power when usedin the field. To accomplish this, it is necessary that the wheels of themachine be movable depending on the direction the machine is moving.FIG. I shows the wheels of the machine in position for use in the fieldwhen the machine is self-propelled. When in this position, wheel I2 isrotatably secured to the chassis III in any suitable manner. When pulledover the road, however, wheel I2 must be removed or rotated 90. I preferto remove the wheel so that that portion of the chassis to which thewheel 12 was soured can then be secured to a prime mover for towing overthe road.

When the vehicle is being used in the field, wheel I4 is in the positionshown in FIG. I which is also the position shown in. FIG. 6. In FIG. 6the axle 138 for wheel I4 is rotatably mounted with respect to thechassis I0. However, the wheel I; is also mounted so that it can bepivoted 90. To achieve this, the axle I38 is rotatably mounted withrespect to a support member I48 which is pivotally connected to chassisI by means of the pivot pin I42. To secure the support member I40 to thechassis II) when the wheel I4 is in a position to be used in the field,a threaded member I44 is threaded into opening I43 in the support memberI40 to join it to the chas- III. However, when the machine is to betowed over the road, the wheel I4 thus rotated 90 from the positionshown in MG. 1, the threaded member I44 is removed from its positionshown in FIG. 6 and the support member I40 then pivoted 90 on the pivotpin I42 to the position shown in FIG. 7. The threaded member I44 is thenthreaded through an opening M6 in the chassis I8 into a correspondingopening (not shown) in the support member I40 to secure it to thechassis III. With this very simple arrangement, the wheel I4 can bemoved between the two positions and locked in place in a matter of avery few minutes.

In FIG. 8, there is shown a portion of the machine including wheel I4which is shown in the same position as the wheel is shown in FIG. I,namely, in a position for the machine to be operated in the field. FIG.8 illustrates the manner in which the machine is driven when in thefield. Secured to and rotatab e with the drive shaft 28 is a sprocketI48 (FIGS. I and 3) which through chain I50 drives the sprocket I52. Thesprocket I52 in turn is secured to shaft I54 the other end of which isconnected to the friction drive wheel I56. Shaft I54 extends outwardlybeyond the friction drive wheel I56 and is ztiTlXBd to an upright armI58 which in turn is pivotally mounted on the chassis III. The arm I58is connected to an operating lever I68 through an overthe-center linkagearrangement I62 in such a way that the friction drive wheel 156 can beengaged and disengaged from the wheel I4. Since the shaft I54 and thusthe friction drive wheel I56 will be rotatably driven at all times thatthe main clutch I28 is engaged, the operator need only operate the leverI68 to control movement of the machine. It should be noted that theshaft 84 is driven from the shaft the direction of which can be reverseddepending upon the direction it is desired to move the machine. Thus,provision is very simply made for movement ol'the machine in eitherforward or reverse direction.

In order to control the direction of the machine, I prefer to steer themachine by controlling movement of the ground wheel I6. The ground wheel16 is not visible in FIG. I but is positioned on the chassis III on theright front corner of the machine as it is viewed in FIG. I. As shown inFIG. 9, the ground wheel I6 is rotatably mounted on an axle 164 whichis, in turn, secured to a supporting member I66 that is pivotallymounted with respect to the chassis III by the pivot pin I68. Note thatthe pin I68 is not movable relative to the support member I66 but ratheris turnable in a bushing I70 which is fixed to the chassis I0. There issecured to the upper end of the pivot pin I68 an arm I72 containing acentrally located slot 174 in its outer end. A control pin I76 dependsfrom a control arm I78 which is in turn mounted for pivotal movement ina bushing I88 secured to chassis I0. An operating lever 182 is alsosecured to the control :arm 178 in order to pivot the arm. From thisarrangement, it can be seen that as the operating arm I82 is moved thusturning the control arm 178, the control pin I76 will cam the arm I72 soas to cause the pivot pin 168 to rotate and thus turn the wheel I6.Obviously, any other suitable turning mechanism could also be used forthe machine but the one I have shown is very simple.

All of the various operating levers I60, I82 and 122 are located withineasy reach of an operator positioned on a seat I84 (FIG. I). Thus, asingle operator can very easily control all of the various functions ofthe machine from this one positron.

The basic detailed operation of the machine should be evident from theforegoing description. However, to summarize, if it is desired to movethe machine in the direction of the arrow of FIG. I, the ground wheel I4should be turned to the position shown in FIG. I and, of course, theother ground wheel I2 should be mounted in place. The sod rollingmechanism I8 should be pivoted on the shaft 20 so that it extendsoutwardly to the rear of the machine. The lever 136 for the reversibledrive mechanism is moved to a position so that the sod roller mechanismI8 is driven in the proper direction. By engaging the main clutch I20,the sod roller mechanism 18 is started as well as the first conveyingmeans 56 and the elevating conveyor 70. The operator then moves theoperating lever 168 to engage the friction drive wheel 156 with theground wheel I4 and the machine will move along a path controlled by theoperator by movement of the steering lever I82. If for any reason it isnecessary to reverse the direction of the machine from that indicated bythe arrow of FIG. I, all that is necessary is for the operator to removethe bar 52 and allow the apron 48 to swing downwardly. The operator canthen manually lift the sod roller mechanism I8 so that it pivots aboutshaft 20 until the sod roller mechanism extends to the end of themachine opposite to that shown in FIG. I. The apron 48 on the oppositeside of the machine is then raised and the bar 52 placed in the mountingopening 54 so as to maintain the apron 48 in an upright position. Theoperator then reverses the drive by movement of the control lever I36and the machine is ready to operate in the opposite direction byengaging the main clutch I28 and the friction drive wheel I56.

From the above description, it will be evident that l have designed amachine that is very simple, uses a minimum number of parts but stilldoes a very effective and relatively fast job of harvesting sod. Themachine is simple so that it requires a minimum amount of maintenance,and it is adapted to operating in both directions and, therefore, can beused in small fields or fields enclosed with fencing in which it wouldotherwise be impossible to harvest sod that can be cut by the usual sodcutters. The machine eliminates much of the back breaking work of handrolling and lifting of the sod onto a truck for transportation to thejob site. The machine can be easily and quickly adapted for over theroad towing by the same truck that is used to haul the sod by merelyremoving one of the ground wheels and connecting the machine to thehitch on the truck after the other ground wheels are rotated Of course,only a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated andthere are other ways in which to construct the machine. It will also beobvious to those skilled in the art that various revisions andmodifications and changes can be made in the preferred embodiment shownherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Itis my intention, however, that all such revisions and modifications asare obvious to those skilled in the art will be included within thescope of the following claims:

I claim:

1. In an apparatus for forming rolls of cut strips of sod and the like,having a frame, ground engaging wheels rollably supporting said framefor movement along the ground, means for propelling said apparatus, sodrolling means carried by said frame, and sod roll conveying means, theimprovement in said sod rolling means comprising an arm pivotallysupported at one end on said frame and extending outwardly anddownwardly and in a direction opposite to the direction of travel ofsaid apparatus, a shaft at the lower end of said arm rotatable about anaxis generally transverse to the direction of travel of the apparatus, arotatable member on said shaft, an endless member supported by said armand engageable with said rotatable member and movable in a directionlongitudinally of said arm, a rotatable sod roll starting member affixedto said shaft on each side of said endless member, a stationary liftingshoe on the lower end of said arm beneath and at the outer end of saidendless member, said shoe being adapted to engage the cut end of a stripof sod and lift it so that it can be easily engaged by said rollstarting member, drive means to drive said endless member and said rollstarting member in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation ofsaid wheels so as to roll a cutstrip of sod, and an upwardly inclinedramp carried by said frame beneath said endless member between its upperand lower ends, said sod roll conveying means being located forwardly ofsaid ramp and operable to move a roll of sod transversely of thedirection of movement of the apparatus, said endless member and rampcooperating to receive the roll of sod and lift it onto said sod rollconveying means.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which said endless member is a chain, andsaid rotatable member is a sprocket, and a second sprocket is providedat the upper end of said arm and is engageable with said chain, saidchain serving to drive said sod roll starting members.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which said sod roll starting members eachconsist of a rotatable disc having a plurality of axially extending pinsaffixed to said disc around its periphery.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 in which there is secured to said shaftadjacent to each of said sod roll starting members a paddle wheel theouter diameter of which is substantially the same as the outer diameterof said sod roll starting members.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 in which each of said stationary liftingshoes includes a lifter plate extending somewhat vertically with respectto the ground, said lifter plate being vertically adjustable.

6. An apparatus for forming rolls of cut strips of sod and the like,said apparatus comprising a frame, ground engaging wheels rollablysupporting said frame for movement along the ground, means forpropelling said apparatus, sod rolling means carried by said frame, saidsod rolling means including an arm pivotally supported at one end onsaid frame and extending outwardly and downwardly in a directionopposite to the direction of travel of the apparatus, an endless movablemember supported by said arm and movable in a direction longitudinallyof said arm, sod roll starting means affixed to said arm at its outerend, drive means to drive said endless member and said sod rollstarting-means in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation ofsaid wheels so as to roll a cut strip of sod, an inclined ramp pivotallymounted on said frame beneath said endless member between its upper andlower ends, conveying means forwardly of said ramp and operable to movea roll of sod transversely of the direction of movement of theapparatus, said endless member and ramp cooperating to receive the rollof sod and lift it onto said conveying means, a second ramp pivotallymounted on said frame on the side of said conveying means opposite tothe said first ramp, and means to hold a selected one of said ramps in aposition with its outer end swung upwardly to serve as a stop for a rollof sod lifted onto said conveying means, the pivotal mounting for saidarm being so located with respect to said conveying means as to allowsaid arm and endless member to be swung to a position with the lower endon either side of said conveying means.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 in which the pivotal mounting for said armis a shaft, said shaft also serving as the drive shaft for said endlessmember, and power means is provided to drive said shaft, said powermeans also serving to propel the apparatus.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 in which there is provided a drive unitconnecting said shaft and said power means, said .drive unit includingmeans to selectively reverse the direction of rotation of said shaft.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 in which said conveying means is driven fromsaid power means through said drive unit, said drive unit includingmeans to cause said conveying means to be driven in the same directionat all times when said power means is operable, regardless of thedirection of movement of the apparatus.

1. In an apparatus for forming rolls of cut strips of sod and the like,having a frame, ground engaging wheels rollably supporting said framefor movement along the ground, means for propelling said apparatus, sodrolling means carried by said frame, and sod roll conveying means, theimprovement in said sod rolling means comprising an arm pivotallysupported at one end on said frame and extending outwardly anddownwardly and in a direction opposite to the direction of travel ofsaid apparatus, a shaft at the lower end of said arm rotatable about anaxis generally transverse to the direction of travel of the apparatus, arotatable member on said shaft, an endless member supported by said armand engageable with said rotatable member and movable in a directionlongitudinally of said arm, a rotatable sod roll starting member affixedto said shaft on each side of said endless member, a stationary liftingshoe on the lower end of said arm beneath and at the outer end of saidendless member, said shoe being adapted to engage the cut end of a stripof sod and lift it so that it can be easily engaged by said rollstarting member, drive means to drive said endless member and said rollstarting member in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation ofsaid wheels so as to roll a cut strip of sod, and an upwardly inclinedramp carried by said frame beneath said endless member between its upperand lower ends, said sod roll conveying means being located forwardly ofsaid ramp and operable to move a roll of sod transversely of thedirection of movement of the apparatus, said endless member and rampcooperating to receive the roll of sod and lift it onto said sod rollconveying means.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1 in which said endlessmember is a chain, and said rotatable member is a sprocket, and a secondsprocket is provided at the upper end of said arm and is engageable withsaid chain, said chain serving to drive said sod roll starting members.3. The apparatus of claim 2 in which said sod roll starting members eachconsist of a rotatable disc having a plurality of axially extending pinsaffixed to said disc around its periphery.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3in which there is secured to said shaft adjacent to each of said sodroll starting members a paddle wheel the outer diameter of which issubstantially the same as the outer diameter of said sod roll startingmembers.
 5. The apparatus of claim 1 in which each of said stationarylifting shoes includes a lifter plate extending somewhat vertically withrespect to the ground, said lifter plate being vertically adjustable. 6.An apparatus for forming rolls of cut strips of sod and the like, saidapparatus comprising a frame, ground engaging wheels rollably supportingsaid frame for movement along the ground, means for propelling saidapparatus, sod rolling means carried by said frame, said sod rollingmeans including an arm pivotally supported at one end on said frame andextending outwardly and downwardly in a direction opposite to thedirection of travel of the apparatus, an endless movable membersupported by said arm and movable in a direction longitudinally of saidarm, sod roll starting means affixed to said arm at its outer end, drivemeans to drive said endless member and said sod roll starting means in adirection opposite to the direction of rotation of said wheels so as toroll a cut strip of sod, an inclined ramp pivotally mounted on saidframe beneath said endless member between its upper and lower ends,conveying means forwardly of said ramp and operable to move a roll ofsod transversely of the direction of movement of the apparatus, saidendless member and ramp cooperating to receive the roll of sod and liftit onto said conveying means, a second ramp pivotally mounted on saidframe on the side of said conveying means opposite to the said firstramp, and means to hold a selected one of said ramps in a position withits outer end swung upwardly to serve as a stop for a roll of sod liftedonto said conveying means, the pivotal mounting for said arm being solocated with respect to said conveying means as to allow said arm andendless member to be swung to a position with the lower end on eitherside of said conveying means.
 7. The apparatus of claim 6 in which thepivotal mounting for said arm is a shaft, said shaft also serving as thedrive shaft for said endless member, and power means is provided todrive said shaft, said power means also serving to propel the apparatus.8. The apparatus of claim 7 in which there is provided a drive unitconnecting said shaft and said power means, said drive unit includingmeans to selectively reverse the direction of rotation of said shaft. 9.The apparatus of claim 8 in which said conveying means is driven fromsaid power means through said drive unit, said drive unit includingmeans to cause said conveying means to be driven in the same directionat all times when said power means is operable, regardless of thedirection of moveMent of the apparatus.